Wire-stretcher.



PATENTED FEB. 2'7, 1906.

W. MGNAMES.

' WIRE STRETOHER..

APPLICATION FILED MAY 5, 1905.

I mrmvzon:

,Br/u'd 4170mm".-

WITNESSES? WILLIAM MONAMES, OF ABERDEEN, SOUTH DAKOTA.

WIRE-ST RETCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 27, 1906.

Application filed May 5, 1905. Serial No. 258,973.

To a whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM MoNAMEs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Aberdeen, in the county of Brown and State of South Dakota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wire-Stretchers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in devices for stretching and repairing wire fences and wires used for fences, telegraphs, and other purposes, the object being to provide a wire-stretcher of simple and novel construction and by means of which wires and woven-wire fences may be stretched quickly and with comparatively little manual exertion. This and other objects I attain by the novel construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of my stretching device in position for stretching a wovenwire fence. Fig. 2 is a top view of the device shown in the act of stretching a barbed wire preparatory to splicing it. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of one of the clamps by which the wire to be stretched is gripped.

Referring to the drawings by referencenumerals, 4 is a yoke-shapedframe in which are ournaled on two bolts or shafts 5 5 two drums 6 6, each having a ratchet-wheel 7 or 7*, operated in opposite directions by the dogs 8 8 pivotally carried by a bifurcated hand-lever 9, pivoted at 10 to both sides of the frame.

11 represents pawls locking the ratchetwheels while the dogs 8 take new hold.

From the dogs 8 extend upward through apertures 12 in the shoulders of the lever 9 rods 13 serving as guides for helical springs 14, by which the dogs are held in engagement with the ratchet-wheels.

Upon each spool or drum is wound a cable or rope 15, carrying in its free end a snaphook 16, adapted for ready attachment in various manners as the case may require. Thus to the left in Fig. 1 is shown how the rope is taken around a fence-post or other post 17 and the snap 16 engaged with the rope itself, while to the right the snap engages in the crutch of a two-armed rope 18, having at its ends cold-shuts 19, held apart by a cross-bar 20, having its reduced ends inserted in the cold-shuts or other rings, which in Fig. 1 carry clamping devices 21, of which only two are shown in Fig. 1; but there may be several of them attached to the snap-hook by arms like 18 and rings or cold-shuts 19*, so that a woven-wire fence, as indicated at 22 23, may

have its longitudinal wires 23 clamped between the corrugated shoe 24 and the corrurugated cam 25 of any desired number of clamps. The clamp 21 consists of a shoe or plate 2 1, having holes in one end for the ring 19 and in the other end for the hook 29, which may help take hold of the meshes or cross-bars of a woven fence, as indicated in Fi 1.

25 is a bifurcated or double cam straddling the central upright 27, to which it is pivoted at 26, while its upper end forms a short handle 28.

represents guarding-lips on the shoe to prevent too easy or accidental disengagement of the wire from the clamp.

In Fig. 3 is shown how a single wire 31 may be stretched by such a clamp, in which case the snap-hook may simply engage in the ring or link 19, the same as in Fig. 2, where the stretcher is shown as interposed between the ends of a broken wire 32, which is to be pulled together and spliced or mended. In this case the clamps are separated and attached one to each rope 15.

In the operation of the device when the lever 9 is vibrated on its pivot 10 the dogs 8 rotate both of the drums 6, thus pulling in the two ropes 15, thereby doubling the speed of the work, while losin none of the pressure or force such a lever wil furnish.

It is evident also that the clamp is capable of holding one wire at each side of the post 27 so that two parallel wires, whether in a woven fence or separate, may be stretched by one clamp in one operation, and by using several clamps, as in Fig. 1, a whole fence may be stretched in one operation.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A wire -stretcher comprising an elongated open frame, an operating-lever pivoted at the middle thereof, two spring-pressed dogs carried by the lever, two rope-drums mounted in the frame, one near each side of the lever, ratchet-wheels on the drums oper- IIO ated by the dogs, stopping-pawls pivoted to the frame and engaging the ratchet-wheels, two ropes, one wound on each drum and having at their free ends means for attaching them to objects. v

2. A wire-stretcher comprising an elongated open frame, an 0 erating-lever pivoted at the middle thereo two spring-pressed dogs carried by the lever, two rope-drums mounted in the frame, one near each side of the lever, ratchet-wheels on the drums operated by the dogs, stopping-pawls pivoted to the frame and engaging the ratchet-wheels, two ropes, one wound on each drum, and snap-hooks secured to the free ends of one or both of the ropes.

3. A wire-stretcher comprising an elongated open i'rame, an o erating-lever pivoted at the middle thereof, two spring-pressed dogs carried by the lever, two rope-drums mounted in the frame, one near each side of the lever, ratchet-wheels on the drums operated by the dogs, stopping-pawls pivoted to the frame and engaging the ratchet-wheels, two ropes, one wound on each drum, a plurality of arms, 18 18*, extending from the outer end of one of the ropes, wire-clamping devices carried by each of said arms, and means for holding the arms spread.

4. A wire-stretcher comprising an elongated open frame, an operating-lever pivoted at the middle thereof, two spring-pressed dogs carried by the lever, two rope-drums mounted in the frame, one near each side of the lever, ratchet-wheels on the drums operated by the dogs, stopping-pawls pivoted to the frame and engaging the ratchet-wheels, two ropes, one wound on each drum, a plurality of arms, 18 18 extending from the outer end of one of the ropes, wire-clamping devices carried by each of said arms, and means for holding the arms spread, and snaphooks at the ends of the two ropes, substan tially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses. I

WILLIAM MONAMES. Witnesses:

ROSWELL BOTTUM, J. B. HAMILTON. 

